Ciara 'really respects' Missy Elliott

Ciara's good friend Missy Elliott serves as a 'huge inspiration' for her.

The 27-year-old Goodies singer is currently working on her fifth studio album.

Whenever Ciara feels creatively blocked, she calls on Missy for encouragement.

"I dug deeper and started to pick up on things that I probably would've never [noticed] before that are minor, but really stand out and mean so much more and being around my friends, people like Missy - she's really a huge inspiration to me," Ciara told MTV News.

"I remember looking up at her one time like, 'My friend is Missy Elliott,' and I'm thinking to myself 'that's crazy,' just because of how much I respect her and what she's contributed to music. Being around people like her is always inspiring to me."

After Ciara creates a song, she shares the music with Missy to garner her opinion.

"I always share my projects with her early,' she said.

'I'll go to her house and play her the records really early in the process, and it's always so cool, but I just have pinch myself in moments when I see her a lot.'

Ciara's new record One Woman Army will be released in 2013.